Chapter 16: Forensic Odontology

  • Forensic Odontology → the application of dental and paradental knowledge to the solution of legal issues in civil and in criminal matters.

  • Enamel → what teeth are made up of

    • hardest substance in the body

    • has the ability to withstand trauma, decomposition, heat degradation, water, and most other outside forces.

  • The teeth can withstand temperatures of up to 1600°C

🦷 Forensic Odontology Overview

  • Forensic odontology is an old and well‑established science.

  • Human identification through teeth and dental work has been documented for centuries.

🏛 Early Historical Example (66 A.D.)

  • Agrippina the Younger ordered the death of Lollia Paulina, accused of sorcery.

  • Soldiers returned with Paulina’s decomposing head as proof.

  • Identification made via a misshapen front tooth.

  • Demonstrates early use of dental traits for positive identification.

🇺🇸 Paul Revere & the Revolutionary War

  • Paul Revere worked as a dentist.

  • Identified fallen soldiers using custom dental bridgework he had created.

  • Most famous case: Dr. Joseph Warren (1775), identified by a silver‑and‑ivory bridge Revere made two years earlier.

⚰ Adolf Hitler & Eva Braun (1945)

  • Both committed suicide; bodies were burned per Hitler’s instructions.

  • Remains were heavily damaged, requiring dental record comparison.

  • Hitler’s dentist, Dr. Hugo Johannes Blaschke, provided dental records.

  • U.S. intelligence confirmed identities through dental evidence.

⚖ Webster–Parkman Case (1850) — First U.S. Court Acceptance

  • Dr. George Parkman (wealthy Boston physician) disappeared in 1849.

  • John Webster, a Harvard lecturer, was in financial debt to Parkman.

  • Janitor /iscovered bone fragments and teeth in Webster’s furnace.

  • Parkman’s dentist positively identified the teeth.

  • Dental evidence used in court; Webster convicted of murder.

  • First major U.S. legal acceptance of dental identification.

Tooth Basis

  • ~32 teeth in the adult mouth

  • ~20 teeth in a child’s mouth

  • Four types of teeth; the molars, premolars, canines, and incisors

  • The teeth differ in size, shape, and root type, and are therefore relatively easy for forensic dentists to identify.

  • Dentin → the hard, dense tissue that forms the bulk of a tooth, lying beneath the enamel and surrounding the pulp.

  • Tooth Pulp → made up of connective tissues and cells and contains blood vessels and nerves

  • The root of the tooth is embedded in bone of the jaw and covered in a specialized calcified substance called cementum that helps anchor the tooth in place and protect the roots.

  • Attrition → the loss of tooth structure by mechanical forces from opposing teeth.

  • Periodontal disease → a set of inflammatory conditions affecting the tissues surrounding the teeth, often caused by bacterial infection leading to the loss of the supporting bone.

  • The trabecular is a supportive and connective tissue element which form in bone and creates a particular pattern along stress lines within the bone. The jaw has this type of pattern and it is considered individual to people. 

🦷 Age‑Related Dental Changes

  • Secondary dentin

    • As a person ages, the pulp cavity gradually fills with dentin.

    • Dentin is a bony, radiopaque substance, making it easily visible on X‑rays.

  • Root translucency

    • Tooth roots become increasingly translucent with age.

    • This makes roots harder to see on X‑rays.

    • Commonly used as an adult age‑estimation indicator.

🦴 Root Reabsorption & Cementum Deposition

  • Root reabsorption

    • Eventually, the body begins to reabsorb the tooth root, reducing its size and strength.

  • Cementum deposition

    • To stabilize the weakening root, the body deposits cementum, which anchors the tooth in the jaw.

    • With age:

      • Cementum increases at the root tip (apex).

      • Cementum decreases toward the crown.